Karia Munda is deputy speaker of Lok Sabha

By IANS,

New Delhi : Tribal leader Karia Munda of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was unanimously elected as the deputy speaker of the Lok Sabha Monday.

The motion for the election of deputy speaker was moved by Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani.

BJP president Rajnath Singh seconded Advani's motion. Leader of House Pranab Mukherjee moved another motion to the same effect while Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal seconded it.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh congratulated Munda for his "wealth of experience".

"He has been an accomplished social worker. He is also a man with quality of head and heart. We assure him full co-operation," Manmohan Singh said.

Advani said the trend of the opposition getting the deputy speaker's post started in 1977. "It is a healthy tradition and it should be continued."

Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, JD-U national president Sharad Yadav, Biju Janata Dal senior leader Arjun Sethi, Basudev Acharya of CPI-M, Trinamool Congress leader Sudip Bandopadhyay, AIADMK leader M. Thambi Durai, T.R. Baalu of the DMK and CPI's Gurudas Gupta also congratulated the newly elected deputy speaker.

In his acceptance speech, Munda, the BJP's Jharkhand leader, said: "To be elected as a deputy speaker is a great honour. I accept it with great humility and I will make whole hearted effort to raise the dignity of the house."